N.K. diplomat says there will be no negotiations on nuclear program
Choe Son-hui, director-general of the North American department of North Korea's foreign ministry, made the remarks at an international forum on nonproliferation in Moscow.
The North is living under constant threats from the U.S., she said, adding that Pyongyang has become more confident that it needs nuclear weapons to counter any possible attacks.
Choe said that the North has its own ballistic and nuclear weapons but they are intended to defend itself from the threats from the U.S.
She added that the North's ultimate goal is to have a balance of power with the U.S. so that the U.S. cannot threaten any military action against it.
The diplomat said that the North will not have any negotiations if they are about its nuclear weapons, calling on the U.S. to recognize it as a nuclear weapons state.
Tensions have heightened since the North defiantly conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test last month, drawing strong condemnation from the international community.
The conference was attended by diplomats, former government officials and private-sector experts from around 40 countries. As South Korea sent its deputy nuclear envoy to the event, it raised expectations that there could be contact of some type between the two Koreas.